Dale's Pale Ale - Pack It In!

Just recently, I went out and took a wild stab at trying Dale's Pale Ale which is proudly produced by Oskar Blues Brewery out of Lyons, Colorado.

Being a huge fan of pale ales and India Pale Ales in particular, I was more than a little skeptical of this hop offering. Afterall, it's packaged in an aluminum can. Nothing good can come of that, right? That's what I've always thought since I branched off of the macro-brew trail long ago and moved on to bigger, better things...all things microbrew that is.

Well, I was dead wrong. A good, solid microbrew does not have to ALWAYS come in a brown bottle. In fact, despite my predispositions, the whole "can" thing was what got me curious in the first place. No matter how bad I wanted to resist the marketing of this brewery and using the whole "microbrew in a can" gimmick, I gave in and purchased a mixed case (12 Dale's Pale Ale and 12 Old Chub Scottish Ales). Let me tell you what I found.

This pale ale didn't disappoint. Looking at the can design itself was not all that impressive. The silver, red, white and blue colors actually gave me a little bit of a reminder of the Pabst Blue Ribbon cans only with reverse proportionality of red to the Pabst blue. Kinda tacky design, but it's what's inside that counts here.

This ale poured an orange-auburn into a pint mug. If you like a bid head on your beer, you aren't going to get it here...about 1/4 inch lasting about 3 minutes before dissipating to nothing.
But the taste...aaaahhhh that's where it's at here. Close your eyes while sipping Dale's Pale Ale and you'd swear it was from a bottle. Being a hops nut, the bitterness/piney feel of this brew really hit the spot although the level of carbonation was just a bit less zingy than I like personally. It came across just a little flat. But don't let that deter you though. In fact, I think the whole "can gimmick" thing made me keep thinking it was less of a beer than it actually was. I think I'd mentally programmed my tastebuds to automatically deduct a point or two just because of the fact it was a microbrew out of an aluminum can. But upon second review, if I just closed my eyes and took a sip, I was able to realize this was far and away better than many microbrews I've tried from the bottle.

I can just picture myself throwing a case of dale's pale ale in back of my Ford Escape to take on a camping trip with some pals. When you put it all in perspective, if you like the taste of a fine microbrew over the boring lack of flavor in many of today's macro-brews, Dale's Pale Ale will give a fine reproduction of many of the finer micro pale ales in a fully portable and durable aluminum can. If Bud, Coors or Miller just isn't your thing and you need something more substantial in your beer, Dale's Pale Ale makes a fine option when you're heading outdoors for a camping trip, hunting lodge or tailgating at your favorite team's next game.

I found my case at a local brewery in Western Pennsylvania. Dale's Pale Ale is not something I've seen around much in this part of the country though, so if you're looking to try it out, the availability at your local establishment may vary. If you do get a chance though, I would recommend a try.

Giving this one 7.25 out of 10.00.

You can check out more reviews of new microbrews and fun microbrew and craft beer related info at Microbrew Review or My Squidoo Lens. Check out Summer Microbrew too!